Thunder Game Day: OKC Caps Off West Coast Road Trip in Portland

The Thunder is looking to keep the winning streak going in a matchup against one of the worst teams in the league.

The Oklahoma City Thunder heads north for their first matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers.

This game will be a matchup between teams on vastly different trajectories. Portland, in the early stages of a rebuild, has lost six straight.

Meanwhile, the Thunder has won four in a row after Saturday’s comeback win against the Golden State Warriors. It will be only the Thunder's second back-to-back of the season as they look to build on their momentum.

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ODDS:

The Thunder enter the day as 7.5-point favorites against the Trail Blazers, and the total over/under is 227.5 points.

KEYS TO THE GAME:

The biggest key for the Thunder will be to stay focused. After a hard-fought win against the Warriors, it would be easy to see the Blazers as an automatic win.

Oklahoma City has to respect Portland properly but must also play to its strengths. Without Anfernee Simons or Scoot Henderson to play against, Oklahoma City’s guards could be in for a big game.

Coming off a 40-point performance at Golden State, Gilgeous-Alexander may be able to put together a similar game in Portland. In any case, Oklahoma City’s star needs to show that he is the best player on the floor.

Shaedon Sharpe and Jerami Grant will try to lead the Blazers to a win. They are the Blazers’ top scorers and have a chance to snap their team’s losing skid.

The Thunder’s defense will be at the forefront in this matchup, as the Blazers have the worst offensive rating in the league at only 103.9. This should help the Thunder get stops and get out on the fast break as long as they can control the glass.

RECORDS:

Oklahoma City Thunder (9-4) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (3-9)

INJURIES:

Check out our live injury tracker, along with our game day injury report that will release later today.

WHEN:

Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023, at 8:00 PM CT

LOCATION:

Moda Center - Portland, OR

TV/RADIO:

Bally Sports Oklahoma, NBA League Pass, 98.1 FM The Sports Animal

FINAL WORD:

Oklahoma City is looking for its first five-game winning streak since the 2019-20 season. A win would also help Oklahoma City remain firmly in the top half of the Western Conference standings nearly a month into the season.

After the Thunder finishes this road trip, they will return home for a game against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.

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